Fred Rice: First for Trump, First in Hampton, First in the Hearts of his Countrymen

Rice

Speaking about the Donald phenomenon on "The News Hour," David Brooks said that 10-15% of the Republican party believes President Obama was born in Kenya and educated in Manchuria to take over the United States government for the Chinese and Russians, so the fact that 20% of Republicans would be voting for Trump is no surprise; it's simply a reflection of the lunatic fringe which is no longer just a fringe in the GOP.  

The Donald as Most Democrats see Him

With that concept in mind, reading the seacoast online newspaper report of Fred Rice's new affection for Mr. Trump makes some sense:

State Rep. Fred Rice, R-Hampton, said Trump impressed him Friday night. Rice has gone to see 11 of the 17 Republican presidential candidates this year, and Trump has gone from near the bottom of his list to the top.

Rice said Trump is unfairly labeled as too brash and having poor character for a presidential candidate. He pointed out that the biggest roar from the crowd came when he told the auditorium, “You don’t want a politically correct president.”

Rice said the fact that Trump is paying for his own campaign is evidence that he’s going to do exactly what he wants to do. Friday, Trump said other candidates are bound to the wishes of their campaign donors.

“Nobody can buy him off,” Rice said. “He’s going to do the right thing, and he’s said that, and he’s going to do it the right way.”

In regards to Trump’s transition from a more liberal past to his Republican candidacy, Rice said that’s nothing for voters to worry about. He noted that President Ronald Reagan was also a “card-carrying” Democrat years before he switched parties and became an icon for conservatism.

“If (Reagan) hadn’t made that switch and people didn’t respect him, we would have missed out on one of the best presidents this country has ever known,” Rice said.

Fred Rice represents Hampton, Heaven help us. What he especially  likes about Mr. Trump is he doesn't need money or help from anybody else. He can buy all the help he needs from his own coffers. So what is Mr. Rice actually saying? He is saying Mr. Trump does not need to listen to anyone else, doesn't need to do anything but what he wants to do. Now that is the heart of the Free Stater, right there. We don't need no frigging politician. We need a strong man who knows his own mind. We need a dictator.  

As for Mr. Trump, if Brooks is correct, he will get his 20% of the Republican electorate, but he will not get any more than than in a national election when it's not just Republicans voting.

Mr. Trump as most normal people see him

Mr. Trump says he'll do better than any other Republican among Hispanics because he hires lots of Hispanics and they like him. He also says women like him and Joe Sixpack likes him, because someday Joe knows he'll be just like Donald, maybe not as rich, but almost.

The Donald As Fred Sees Him